Tuesday, May 30, 2017

She first gained recognition for her role as Rue in “The Hunger Games,” alongside Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson. Now, teen star Amandla Sternberg stars as Maddy in in Warner Bros. Pictures' new romantic dramaEverything,Everything (in Philippine cinemas June 21, 2017).

Based on the bestselling book of the same name by Nicola Yoon, Everything, Everything tells the unlikely love story of Maddy (Sternberg), a smart, curious and imaginative 18-year-old who due to an illness cannot leave the protection of the hermetically sealed environment within her house, and Olly (Nick Robinson), the boy next door who won’t let that stop them. Gazing through windows and talking only through texts, Maddy and Olly form a deep bond that leads them to risk everything to be together…even if it means losing everything.

Amandla Stenberg is huge fan of the book and the script—adding, “I was immediately drawn to the whimsy and the quirkiness of the story and the real life, tangible emotional aspects of it that I could connect to, especially as a teenager. I also loved that this beautiful and meaningful teen romance movie involved seeing an interracial couple in a completely subliminal way.”

Producer Elysa Dutton notes, “I think this urgency for love really resonates for people, especially at the age these characters are. First love is so exciting, and for Maddy, she’s missed a lot of firsts so she’s not going to miss this. Even though she knows this is potentially a life-threatening decision, there’s no choice for her but to take this risk, to really live.”

Both Sternberg and Robinson enjoyed the process of exploring this unusual and often awkward first love relationship—finding the normalcy within its inherent irregularities.

“I had never met Amandla before this film but I’d heard only great things, so I was really excited to work with her,” Robinson recalls. “She’s just a really cool person and I had a great time getting to know her.”

“Both Amandla and Nick were fantastic,” director Stella Meghie states. “Amandla is just angelic,” she continues. “Like Maddy, she’s intelligent and mature, and also romantic, and she definitely brought those sensibilities to the character. My main goal was to make sure that people would believe these two characters fall in love, and Amandla and Nick really clicked from the start. Their chemistry was just so natural and I think that shows in the film.”